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EXCLUSIVE -- “State Department Official Kris Balderston to Lead Fleishman-Hillard’s Washington … Office”: “Fleishman-Hillard today [will announce] the appointment of Kris Balderston as Senior Partner and General Manager of the firm’s Washington … office. He comes … from … Special Representative for Global Partnerships at the U.S. Department of State. … Balderston conceptualized and led the Global Partnership Initiative within the Office of the Secretary of State, [where he] brokered alliances with more than 300 private sector businesses, nonprofit organizations and others. … His 30+ years of experience in Washington includes tenure in the Clinton White House, where he was Deputy Secretary to the Cabinet and Deputy Assistant to the President. In the Senate, he served as Sen. Hillary Clinton’s Legislative Director and then Deputy Chief of Staff. … Fleishman-Hillard is a part of Diversified Agency Services, a division of Omnicom Group Inc.” See the release. http://bit.ly/VJIUYe

CABINET 2.0 – “Obama Is Said Close to Choosing Pritzker for Commerce,” by Bloomberg’s Hans Nichols and John McCormick: “President Obama is close to choosing Chicago businesswoman Penny Pritzker, who led fundraising for his 2008 campaign, as his next commerce secretary … Pritzker, whose family built the Hyatt Hotels Corp. chain, would replace acting commerce secretary Rebecca Blank … Selecting Pritzker, 53, would ensure that one of Obama’s original Chicago supporters would have a voice in shaping his second term … After facing criticism for picking men to lead the State, Treasury and Defense Departments, Obama has announced the appointment of two women for key positions. Yesterday, he selected Sally Jewell, chief executive officer of Recreational Equipment Inc., to be secretary of the Interior Department. Last month, he named Mary Jo White, a former U.S. attorney for Manhattan, as his choice to lead the Securities and Exchange Commission.

“Obama is also considering Wal-Mart Foundation President Sylvia Mathews Burwell for budget director and Ruth Porat, chief financial officer at Morgan Stanley, for deputy Treasury secretary. Jeffrey Zients, the acting White House budget director, is a leading candidate for U.S. trade representative during Obama’s second term.” http://bloom.bg/WweSpc

BREAKING – “Obama Plans Fund-Raising Trips to Aid Senate and House Candidates,” by Jeff Zeleny: “He has agreed to hold at least 14 separate fund-raising events this year … Obama will appear at 10 events outside Washington: five for the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee and five for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. He will also host one event for each committee in Washington as well as appearing at two joint fund-raising galas for House and Senate candidates. The president's fundraising schedule is likely to intensify even more next year. Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. will adhere to his own campaign schedule this year, as will First Lady Michelle Obama.” http://nyti.ms/11rTCoK

“BEHIND THE CURTAIN” COLUMN – “The GOP, Fox political purge,” by Jim VandeHei and Mike Allen: “Republicans and Fox News are moving to purge the controversial political creatures they created. Both were damaged badly in 2012 by loud, partisan voices that stoked the base — but that scared the hell out of many voters. Now, the GOP, with its dismal image, and Fox News, with its depressed ratings in January, are scrambling to dim those voices. … One high-profile Republican strategist, who refused to be named in order to avoid inflaming the very segments of the party he wants to silence, said there is a deliberate effort by party leaders to ‘marginalize the cranks, haters and bigots — there’s a lot of underbrush that has to be cleaned out.’ … So a political colonoscopy is going on before our eyes. Republican after Republican told us the party dodged a bullet with Mitt Romney’s loss: If he had squeaked in, this vital reboot would have been delayed four or eight years. “ http://politi.co/WCc0FD

TIME cover, “THE REPUBLICAN SAVIOR: How Marco Rubio became the new voice of the GOP,” by Michael Grunwald: “[O]n the morning of Dec. 21, [Oriales García Rubio] called her youngest son, Marco Antonio Rubio, the 41-year-old Senator from Florida and great Hispanic hope of the Republican Party—or, as she calls him, Tony. She got his voice mail. ‘Tony, some loving advice from the person who cares for you most in the world,’ she said in Spanish. ‘Don’t mess with the immigrants, my son. Please, don’t mess with them.’ She reminded him that undocumented Americans—los pobrecitos, she called them, the poor things—work hard and get treated horribly. ‘They’re human beings just like us, and they came for the same reasons we came. To work. To improve their lives. So please, don’t mess with them.’ Rubio comes from a family of immigrants and married into another family of immigrants and lives in a neighborhood of immigrants, West Miami, the bilingual bedroom community where he came of age and began his dazzling ascent from city commissioner to state house speaker to U.S. Senator. Now, just two years after he arrived in Washington, the charismatic conservative often hailed as the Tea Party’s answer to Barack Obama has emerged as the most influential voice in the national debate over immigration reform. …

“He has endorsed a path to citizenship that he once derided as ‘code for amnesty,’ risking a backlash from many loyal supporters who see los pobrecitos as freeloaders. But he has also pushed to make that path more arduous, demanding much tougher enforcement first … To hear Rubio talk, reform is certainly not a done deal, as the bipartisanship-loving media have suggested in recent weeks. It’s hard to move massive legislation, and he predicted that Obama will try to drag the package to the left in ways he and House Republicans can’t accept. He pushes back at my suggestion that everyone will have to make concessions. ‘The right has already made concessions,’ he replies. ‘I’m not sure how much further we can go.’ Maybe he is just negotiating, but he doesn’t sound overly optimistic—or overly eager—about a White House ceremony with Obama. ‘I’m not trying to throw cold water on the effort,’ he says. ‘It’s a good effort, an important effort. But we have to be realistic about the pitfalls that lie ahead. This is a very difficult problem that the country hasn’t solved in over two decades.’ …

“Rubio says he has no idea what he’ll do in 2016—run for re-election, ‘run for something else’ or return to the private sector. Some insiders remain dubious that he’ll seek the ‘something else’ route so early in his career. He’s had some awkward personal-finance issues. One of his closest friends and allies, former Congressman David Rivera, is embroiled in a corruption scandal. And his political mentor, Jeb Bush, might seek the White House himself. Their friends assume Rubio would defer in that case, though it was curious that when I asked him whether he had discussed his immigration work with Bush, who has a book coming out on the subject, he said he sent a text message.” See the cover. http://goo.gl/QmcIQRead the story. http://ti.me/UEeFSi

--RUBIO TO DELIVER Republican rebuttal to State of the Union (Feb. 12) – Boehner-McConnell release: “Sen. Rubio, now in his third year in the U.S. Senate, has been a champion of growing the American middle class through limited government and free enterprise policies, making him a natural choice to outline why the Republican vision can help Americans rise above their current circumstances in the Obama economy. The address will be delivered in both English and Spanish.”

--FREE ADVICE: Rubio will deliver his address in D.C., at a location to be determined. Playbookers (especially you advance and paid-media folks), put on your thinking caps: What should Rubio’s venue should be – a diner? A kitchen table? Nats Park? Ted’s Bulletin? We’ll share the shrewdest, most creative ideas that would be feasible to pull off. mallen@politico.com

BIDEN’S DAY, per an aide: “[T]he Vice President will meet with director David Russell and actor Bradley Cooper of ‘Silver Linings Playbook’ to discuss the importance of ensuring access to quality treatment for those with mental illness.”

MATTHEW DOWD, JIM AVILA -- ABC News President Ben Sherwood: “I am pleased to share some news about … Matthew Dowd and Jim Avila. … Matthew is taking on a broader role at ABC News as an analyst and special correspondent on-air and across all platforms as well as a senior strategic advisor on my team behind the scenes. In his special correspondent role, Matthew will go beyond political news to explore uniquely American cultural, economic and spiritual trends. His common sense take on the American experience will be featured on ‘Good Morning America,’ ‘World News,’ Nightline’ and special editions of ‘This Week.’ …

“Senior National Correspondent Jim Avila is expanding his duties in our Washington bureau. Jim will join our Chief White House Correspondent Jonathan Karl at the White House, where he will report for ABC News and later this year will serve as the first White House correspondent for the ABC/Univision joint venture. In addition, he will lead the charge for ABC News on covering Hispanic America, immigration reform, education, politics and other issues vitally important to the Latino community … Jim will continue to contribute to 20/20 … Leading our coverage from the White House, Jon Karl is off to an incredible start. I look forward to all the great journalism and scoops to come from this new dynamic duo.”

TV TONIGHT – “CNN Debuts Jake Tapper Reports Documentary, ‘An American Hero: The Uncommon Valor of Clint Romesha,’ … at 10 p.m.: “[T]he anchor and chief Washington correspondent will look back at one of the deadliest days of the Afghan war through a compelling interview with former U.S. Army Staff Sergeant Clinton Romesha, who led the courageous battle when Combat Outpost Keating was attacked on Oct. 3, 2009 [and will be awarded the Medal of Honor by President Obama on Mon.]. … The special also will feature interviews with Sergeant Thomas Rasmussen and former Private First Class Chris Jones who fought alongside Romesha. Romesha was a central figure in Tapper’s … book about Combat Outpost Keating, ‘The Outpost: An Untold Story of American Valor.’ … [Tapper’s] one-hour weekday program will premiere in March.”

--PLAYBOOK BACKSTORY: Tapper met Romesha in 2010 in Colorado when he began reporting that would become “The Outpost.” They've stayed in touch, and three days after starting his new CNN job, Tapper flew to Minot, N.D., for the first interview with the humble, laconic Romesha. The interview was so moving, and Romesha so powerful in it, Tapper called CNN President Worldwide Jeff Zucker immediately afterwards to tell him they had something special. Before the Medal of Honor event, Tapper is throwing a reunion for the troops and families of Black Knight Troop, 3-61 CAV, which Walmart is sponsoring in honor of Romesha and his brothers. American Airlines, Southwest and JetBlue are helping with flights for troops and their families (including some Gold Star families, whose sons and husbands and daddies did not make it home), and Best Western is helping with lodging.

** A message from the Auto Alliance: In a recent opinion survey, 65% of drivers said erratic drivers are their #1 concern on the road. Automakers are listening. From collision monitoring to lane departure prevention – driver assists are on board, for everyone’s safety: AutoAlliance.org/DriverAssists **

DRIVING THE DAY – “Obama to hand secret drone war guidelines to lawmakers,” by AFP’s Stephen Collinson: “In a reversal, President Obama will allow lawmakers access to secret documents outlining the legal justification for drone strikes that kill US citizens abroad who conspire with Al-Qaeda. An administration official disclosed the move Wednesday on the eve of a [2:30 p.m.] Senate hearing on Obama's nomination of his top White House anti-terror adviser John Brennan to lead the Central Intelligence Agency … Some senators had warned they would use Brennan's confirmation as leverage to force the administration to share more information on the legal and constitutional grounds for the US government killing its own citizens. The disclosure also comes after NBC News published an unclassified Justice Department white paper [offering] a more expansive definition of when a drone strike against a US citizen can be justified than has been available in the past. Extracted from the secret documents that will now be made available to congressional committees with jurisdiction over the war on terror, the memo expands on the concept of self-defense used to justify an attack.”

--An administration official said in an emailed statement last night: “Today, as part of the President's ongoing commitment to consult with Congress on national security matters, the President directed the Department of Justice to provide the congressional Intelligence committees access to classified Office of Legal Counsel advice related to the subject of the Department of Justice White Paper.”

STATE VISIT – Jeffrey R. Immelt, GE’s chairman and CEO, is in D.C. to talk about “Riding the Productivity Waves to Growth”: “There are four new drivers of productivity, and success in each depends on the technology and talent we develop. The first is how shale gas is changing the energy debate and the balance of energy power. The second is the Industrial Internet — owning and connecting the analytical layers around industrial products in order to improve performance and efficiency. Next is speed and simplification: the only way to serve our customers better is by working faster and smarter. The last driver and the focus of a forum GE is convening today, is advanced manufacturing. Manufacturing excellence, forgotten for too long, is once again a competitive advantage.” 2-pager from GE Ideas Labhttp://bit.ly/WClctH

BRIAN FREDERICK joins Porter Novelli Public Services as vice president, public affairs: “‘Brian brings us a wealth of expertise in strategic communications, advocacy, grass- roots communications and coalition building,’ said Catherine “Kiki” McLean, senior partner, global director of public affairs and managing director of Porter Novelli Public Services. … Frederick joins Porter Novelli Public Services from the Sports Fans Coalition, where he spent two years as executive director of the nation’s largest non-profit national fan advocacy organization. In his role, he briefed the White House, FCC commissioners and various elected officials on the coalition’s work … Prior to that he served as deputy editorial and research director for Media Matters … Frederick earned a Ph.D. in communication from the University of Colorado at Boulder, a Master’s in journalism from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and a B.A. in English from the University of Iowa. He is an adjunct professor in the sports industry management program at Georgetown University.”

MERCURY EXPANDS to Carolina: “Russell Peck, campaign manager for North Carolina’s newly elected Governor Pat McCrory, joins Mercury Public Affairs as a Senior Vice President [and ]opening a new office … in Raleigh … Mercury Public Affairs is a … national public strategy firm with offices in Washington DC, New York, New Jersey, California, Pennsylvania, Florida, and now North Carolina. Prior to his work with McCrory—the first Republican governor elected in the Tar Heel State since 1984—Peck served as the executive director of the North Carolina Republican Party; during his tenure in 2010 the GOP regained control of the state legislature for the first time in over a century. Peck has worked for the American Natural Gas Association, the Republican National Committee, and has served on campaigns and administrations for President George W. Bush, Governor Chris Christie, and Governor Jeb Bush. Peck graduated from Florida State University in 2003, and resides in Raleigh.”

2014 WATCH -- “Senate control hangs in balance: Divisive issues like gun control and immigration will help frame the 2014 midterm election,” by Paul West: “Republicans are expected to keep their majority in the House, and history would suggest they might expand their numbers in the sixth year of a two-term presidency. But the Democrats' hold on the Senate is at risk, with competitive 2014 contests for at least nine … seats — seven in states Mitt Romney carried in 2012. Republicans would need a net gain of six seats to overturn the Democrats' 55-45 edge. … [T]he 2014 lineup of Senate elections works to the GOP's advantage. Democrats will be defending more seats (21) than Republicans (14), pending a special election in Massachusetts … Recent retirement announcements by a pair of Democratic senators have already weakened their party's chances of keeping their seats. Republicans are favored to pick up the seat of John D. Rockefeller IV in West Virginia, and the Iowa contest for Tom Harkin's seat is a tossup. …

“The most vulnerable Democratic incumbent appears to be Sen. Tim Johnson of South Dakota, no better than an even bet for reelection against Republican Mike Rounds, a former governor. Other Democrats at risk include Sens. Mary L. Landrieu of Louisiana, Mark Pryor of Arkansas, Max Baucus of Montana, Mark Begich of Alaska and Kay Hagan of North Carolina. … [N]one of the 2014 seats held by Republicans is considered particularly vulnerable. Sen. Saxby Chambliss of Georgia … recently announced that he would retire, but his seat is likely to remain in Republican hands. The same is true for other reliably Republican seats held by incumbents who may be challenged from the right in primaries, such as Lindsey Graham of South Carolina. The best chance for a Democratic pickup next year could be in Maine, where moderate Sen. Susan Collins is favored to win reelection but may retire. National Democrats are talking up what they say is McConnell's vulnerability in Kentucky, but Republicans and independent analysts say he's unlikely to be unseated.” http://lat.ms/XXb5wY

MEDIAWATCH – “Robin Roberts to Return to ‘Good Morning America’ Feb. 20” – ABC release: That’s five months to the day since she underwent a bone marrow transplant to treat myelodysplastic syndrome or MDS, a rare blood disorder. … In the weeks before Roberts’ return, … the show will spotlight stories of other resilient men and women who are facing similar challenges with MDS and those she has inspired along the way. Roberts will also share her personal journey on a special edition of ‘20/20’ on Friday, Feb. 22 at 10 p.m., ET. … [L]ast week, Roberts traveled down to her home state of Louisiana with “GMA” co-anchors Josh Elliott and Sam Champion to see family and friends and enjoy some Super Bowl festivities. … Roberts also began a series of ‘dry runs’ at the ‘GMA’ studio in Times Square last month to start acclimating herself again to the anchor chair, testing the studio lights on her sensitive skin and eyes.” Note from Robin, with a recent photohttp://abcn.ws/VJFG74

SPORTS BLINK – “Signing Day: Ole Miss muscles in on power programs,” by AP College Football Writer Ralph D. Russo: “Alabama. Ohio State. Michigan. Florida. Notre Dame. Mississippi? Ole Miss muscled in on the powerhouses that usually dominate national signing day, landing some of the most sought-after prospects in the country on college football's annual first-Wednesday-in-February frenzy. The Rebels, coming off a promising 7-6 season in their first season under coach Hugh Freeze, had the experts swooning by signing three of the bluest chips still on the board and building a well-rounded class otherwise. … The day started with defensive end Robert Nkemdiche from Loganville, Ga., rated the No. 1 recruit in the country by just about everyone who ranks them, deciding to join his brother, Denzel, in Oxford, Miss. … Nkemdiche originally committed to Clemson last year, then backed off that and narrowed his picks down to LSU, Florida and Mississippi - and the Rebels beat the big boys.”

** A message from the Auto Alliance: Driver Assist technologies can help you drive safer in all kinds of situations. Two-thirds of consumers say that erratic drivers are their biggest concern on the road. And according to Federal statistics, more than 90% of crashes involve driver error. From blind spot warnings, to pedestrian detection, to backup collision prevention -- the 12 members of the Auto Alliance are continuously working on innovative technologies to help you drive safer. See these Driver Assists in action, visit AutoAlliance.org/DriverAssists. **